Modern Arrangements
by SplendentGoddess
Summary: Modern AU one-shot: Dreading marrying a man she's never met, Kagome sneaks out for one last night of fun, where she meets a man doing the same thing, ruing his own unwanted engagement. It's too bad they're both unavailable; his dog-ears sure are cute.


Blanket Disclaimer:

Inuyasha, and the characters therein, are the property of Rumiko Takahashi. I am in no way affiliated with Takahashi, or VIZ Productions.

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><p>This story has been modified in compliance with FF's policies regarding adult content. In this format it is rated M (R) and does still contain a lemon, which has been properly edited. The original version is rated MA (X) and can be found on either mediaminer or AFF.<p>

Winner! 3rd Place Best Inu/Kag Romance, Feudal Association 1st Quarter 2012

A/N:

For a change of pace, this story is completely Americanized, and I've even switched to 'demon' and 'half-demon' instead of 'youkai' and 'hanyou', which are my personal preferences. This is a modern-day world in which the different types of demons and humans all live together in peace, more or less, but the upper class still have a strict set of rules and family codes they must abide by, such as arranged marriages. Enjoy!

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~ Modern Arrangements ~

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Entering her favorite nightclub, Kagome glanced around with dispassionate eyes, unable to shake the melancholy that gripped her heart. Tonight was supposed to be her last hurrah, but the temporary adrenaline rush she'd felt at the thought while sneaking out of the house dressed in her best bar-bitch leathers had left her now. She couldn't shake the depression of knowing that after tonight, she would be a married woman, and no longer able to do all of the things she loved so much.

It would be different if she were marrying the man she loved. This wasn't simple wedding jitters, or even the more serious regret of rushing into a commitment she was starting to think she wasn't ready for yet; it was an _arranged _marriage. Her father was selling her off for the 'good of the family', and there wasn't a damn thing she could do about it. One would think that living in the 21st century would have put a stop to such barbaric nonsense, but if your family line was rich enough and important enough, children born into such lives still had no choice but to do whatever their fathers told them to do. She was sure the man she was marrying didn't really want to marry her, either, although that was only an educated guess. Other than that she knew absolutely _nothing _about the guy except for his name and the fact that his family was demonic.

Her fiancé was a demon. She shuddered at the thought.

Now, don't get her wrong, she didn't have anything against demons, and the idea of having half-demon children didn't bother her, either, but she would want such a union to have come from love. She was _not _looking forward to being on the receiving end of death glares from a demon brat whose father had forced him into marrying a human woman against his will. Most people were still not all too comfortable with the idea of mixing the races, and while it did happen more often those days than say, a few hundred years ago, it was almost always when the two people involved were actually in love, and simply didn't care about the species barrier. How lucky the lower classes were, Kagome mused darkly, to be gifted with the opportunity to marry for love. Sure, you _could _marry for love if you were higher class, if your families approved of the pairing, but you had to marry within your ranking, and if you tried to stay single for too long then more often than not, a spouse would ultimately be chosen _for _you. She'd just learned that lesson the hard way. But while arranged marriages were fairly common among higher society in and of themselves – hell, it seemed like they were practically 'in season'that time of year – very rarely were they done between a demon and a human. Kagome honestly wondered what her father had been thinking, agreeing to pawn her off as a bargaining chip under such circumstances. He had seemed like such an awesome dad growing up; she supposed she had just been too naïve as a kid to see him for the emotionless businessman he really was.

To be fair, though, the whole thing had originally been her fiancé's father's idea. As far as she knew, the demonic man had just up and approached her father with the proposal one day, apparently seeking a bride for his unmarried son, and for some God-forsaken reason her father had said yes. Why it was so important that their two families be linked together she didn't know nor did she care. Sure, theirs was the most important human family in the entire region, and his apparently the most important demon family, though she didn't keep up on demonic events, but did that really mean they had to become _one _family? At least they had kept it out of the media, so she wasn't being hounded by a bunch of losers with cameras. That was the last thing she needed right now.

_Ugh, I've spent my whole life trying to avoid political bullshit, and now I'm caught right smack in the middle of it_… Kagome thought forlornly.

The media didn't know _yet, _but her father had every intention of publicly announcing the union after it took place, and she was not looking forward to _that_, either. Of course, she could always run away, but she had been raised better than that. While she wasn't the well-behaved, sophisticated and subservient little woman-slave she knew she would need to pretend to be from here on out, she still could not, in good conscience, willfully do anything that would hurt her family's standing. Whether she liked it or not, she understood her lot in life as her father's daughter. She had to do what he told her in this; she couldn't say no.

Finally deciding to shake it off and enjoy her last night of freedom to the best of her ability, she made her way over to the bar. A drink, she needed a drink.

oooOoooOooo

"Another Jack and Coke, Sir?" the bartender asked over the loud thumping of club music.

Tipping his virtually empty tumbler to gauge how much actual booze was left among the remnants of melted ice, Inuyasha shrugged before downing the last few drops of liquid in a final shot and handing the empty low-ball back to the bartender.

"Sure, keep it comin'."

Refilling the glass, the bartender smiled. He loved demonic customers; they could handle _way _more liquor than a human, and more drinks equaled more tips. When the demon was as rich as this man obviously was, more drinks equaled _way _more tips.

"Six bucks." he stated more conversationally than actually informing the man, knowing his customer knew the price by that point. At a club this busy it was cash only; keeping track of bar tabs would end up getting far too complicated, not to mention they'd run the risk of somebody skipping out with a hookup without paying their bill.

Handing the bartender another ten, Inuyasha immediately picked up and started drinking his drink, not expecting any change back. He'd already told the guy to always keep the change for himself. The bartender waved the four bucks at Inuyasha for a moment with a nod of thanks before putting them in the tip jar. So far he'd already made twenty bucks off the guy, and the night was still young.

Inuyasha didn't normally bother indulging in so much alcohol, but tonight he was on a mission, tonight he actually wanted to get drunk. Sure, he'd get drunk faster drinking Jack straight, but with his canine senses he didn't like the taste. Oh, he could handle his liquor all right, and he would never back down from a drinking contest if someone wanted to line up a row of shots in front of him, but when he was paying for his own drinks and wanting to enjoy himself, he liked a little splash of Coke for sweetener. That's really all it was, anyway, a splash…these so-called mixed drinks were damn near straight up with how slowly the bartender counted to four, not that he was complaining. Honestly, he figured the man was pouring his drinks a little stronger than average on purpose, in thanks for the tips, and that was just fine with him; he'd keep up his end of the bargain.

Taking another swig of his drink, Inuyasha savored the bittersweet taste for a moment, letting his eyes scan over the crowd. There were plenty of things he could complain about at the moment, but bad service wasn't one of them. He was getting married tomorrow. He was getting married against his will to some human girl he'd never even met.

_Thanks a lot, Dad_… the half-demon grumbled sarcastically in his mind.

Oh, he knew his father had meant well, but damn it, he was perfectly capable of living his own life! So what if he hadn't been out on a date in a while? Maybe he _liked _being single. Okay, so being single totally sucked balls, but personally, he didn't think forcing some stranger to marry him was the answer. He saw the way his parents acted around each other. They weren't _enemies_, but there certainly wasn't any love there. Arranged marriages were stupid. If he couldn't find a girl to love him for who he was of her own volition then forcing this girl to be with him certainly wouldn't make her fall in love. Okay sure, it was true that merging the families together _would _be beneficial for both sides. Whoever this chick was, she was practically royalty, her family was so important to the humans, and his family was just as important to the demon population, but neither side really _needed _the merger. That was just the business excuse used to make the whole transaction sound more kosher. His father had put on a big song and dance about how it would improve their standing, and how the demon fractions and human fractions couldn't stay segregated forever and how by intermixing the two most powerful families in the local region they could start the unification of the _blah blah blah…_honestly, Inuyasha had tuned it all out after the words "You're getting married." had left his father's lips.

Maybe it really _was _about the business end of it all, and his father had merely jumped at the chance because of his bachelor status…who knew? Of course, Inuyasha had immediately tried to wriggle out of it, inquiring disbelievingly whether or not the girl was actually, willfully going to go along with it, herself. It wasn't a _shotgun _wedding, and she _could _say no…theoretically, at least. _He _had tried to say no and it hadn't gone over too well, so maybe she was just as stuck as he was. That thought didn't really appease him any, though. Despite himself he actually found himself feeling sorry for the girl; no human woman in her right mind would want to be settled with a half-demon to begin with, let alone forced into a relationship with one against her will. Arguing on her behalf after he had quickly realized his father didn't give a rat's ass about how _he _felt about it, Inuyasha had then tried to get his father to listen to reason in that it wouldn't be fair to _her_, it wouldn't be fair to force the poor girl into marrying a man of mixed blood. If he had been a full-blooded demon that would have been bad enough, but a half-breed? _Nobody _wanted a half-breed. Of course, his father's answer had been, "So long as your blood is blue, boy, then nobody cares if it's human or demon."

Somehow, he was pretty sure that the girl he was supposed to marry would care that he was a freak, blue blood or no. What was her name again? Ki-something? No, Ka-something. It definitely started with a K. Ah, Kagome; her name was Kagome. He wasn't even sure if Kagome _knew _he was a half-demon; when he'd asked his father about it the answer he'd received had been vague at best. Apparently, according to his father, Mr. Higurashi had said something along the lines of Kagome doing as she was told and knowing that they were a 'demon family' but that the details were 'not important' since she'd find out soon enough anyway. That comment had been made in reference to when his father had asked Mr. Higurashi if he would like a list of Inuyasha's favorite things and such, so that his daughter could start familiarizing herself with her future husband's likes and dislikes. That offer had been declined, and of course no such list had been given to Inuyasha's father, either, and so the half-demon knew just about as much about his future bride as she did about him, not a damn thing. She probably didn't even know what _kind _of demon he was! Sighing, Inuyasha took another drink while rolling around in his head all of the things he had been told once he'd finally conceded defeat. This woman, whoever she was, was the eldest child of the Higurashi family. He hadn't gotten to see a picture of her, but he _did _know that Kagome had been raised properly, and that she would most likely not, as his father had put it, 'put up with' his crass behavior and extravagant lifestyle. That was another reason why he'd decided to come out to his favorite club tonight. Aside from wanting to kill a few brain cells…stupid things just grew back anyway thanks to his demon half…this was also a goodbye of sorts from him to his favorite club, at least until he could figure out if and when he would ever actually be able to come back out here again. After all, it wasn't as if he picked up chicks on a nightly basis. He could go out and have fun and still stay faithful to his wife, no problem. Hell, he hadn't had sex since he broke up with his girlfriend, and that had been…

_Has it really been two years? Damn_…

Well, at least that was _one _good thing that was going to come from getting married tomorrow. He was guaranteed at least one night of sex, to 'consummate the relationship' if you wanted to use the least romantic term available. Hopefully it wouldn't be the awkward, not-looking-each-other-in-the-eyes type of sex that usually came from arranged marriages. Knowing his luck, this 'properly raised' daughter was so prim she'd just lie there like a dead fish, letting him 'take his pleasure' from her body like it was the fucking middle ages.

He was quickly pulled from his spiraling thoughts by the knockout beauty that stepped up beside him at the bar. Oh, he would bet that _she _did a _hell _of a lot more than just lie there. Too bad he'd never find out.

"Jack and Coke, please."

"Heh, my kinda girl." he commented quietly, though not quietly enough as she turned his way with a questioning glance. Holding up his own glass as means of explanation, the woman smiled then, and upon receiving and paying for her drink, she held her own glass up in toast.

"Here's to having good taste in drinks." she stated with a giggle in her voice.

"I'll drink to that." Inuyasha smirked, clanking glasses with her before taking another swig.

Studying the woman for a moment as she sipped on her own drink from the little black straw the bartender had stuck in it, Inuyasha couldn't shake the feeling that he knew her from somewhere. Even her outfit looked vaguely familiar.

"This is going to sound like a cheesy pickup line, but do you come here often? I could swear I've seen you in here before."

Caught off guard by the question, only momentarily, it quickly dawned on Kagome that he seemed familiar to her, too. Of course, who could forget a man as exotic looking as this specimen of sexiness? They probably _had_ seen each other in there before. It was too bad neither of them had had the balls to introduce themselves before now.

Gazing her way expectantly, Inuyasha found that the woman's smile was infectious as she confessed with a mild chuckle, "Actually, yes, I do…or well at least I _did _come here all the time. I'm pretty sure tonight's my last night, though."

_Wow, weird coincidence_.

"How come?"

Kagome wasn't sure how to answer that. Should she tell the truth? Arranged marriages in and of themselves were fairly common, after all, and there were already around half a dozen or so scheduled over the next two weeks from various regions that she knew of personally. Middle and lower class people liked to watch and read up on them as if they were celebrities, even sometimes posting wagers on blog pages as to who would marry who next. So admitting that she was being forced into an arranged marriage shouldn't expose who she was aside from the fact that she was a _somebody_. Besides, the media had no idea about this particular wedding, anyway, so that definitely shouldn't tip him off as to who she was exactly, and hell, even if he _did_ somehow already know who she was, and wanted to rat her out to the magazines, the paparazzi still wouldn't have anything to go on without knowing who her finacé was, when the wedding was or where it was taking place. She was safe.

"Arranged marriage." she answered then, not bothering to mask the bitterness in her voice.

"Wow, you too, huh?" he chuckled. Now her reasons for abandoning her favorite club made sense; future husband was probably a dick who wouldn't let his woman have any fun.

When he'd asked his father why her family was pushing for the date that they were, thinking it rather short notice, the dog-demon had said something about it being tradition, at least among humans, that this was the 'season' for such types of marriages, and so if they were going to do this thing they had to do it now, while it was fashionable, or else it would seem weird, at least to the humans, and the girl's family wouldn't allow that. Inuyasha supposed he understood that, even if he didn't _really _understand. He just didn't get why the human world was ruled by the media the way it was, though it was true you couldn't watch the evening news right now without there being at least some passing mention of some blue-blood wedding or another happening somewhere in the country. Three or four of them were happening this week alone, if he wasn't mistaken. Plus there were also some scandalous divorces that had made the news… Honestly, who cared about who hooked up with who or who broke up with who? At least the father of the girl he was marrying had agreed to keep _their _wedding out of the media, per his father's request, thank the gods. It would have totally ruined his last night out partying if a bunch of human paparazzi were buzzing all around him like insects, and it would have probably spelled even more disaster for him tomorrow morning if it'd made it into the tabloids where he'd been the night before. There weren't many things he felt thankful for at the present moment, but that was certainly one of them.

_Wow…small world_… Kagome thought with an amused grin to learn that the gorgeous man in front of her was one of her own. The fact that he was half demon didn't matter to her.

"When's your execution?" she asked with a playful smile, pulling him out of his thoughts.

"Soon," he answered, wanting to keep it vague. There were enough weddings scheduled in the next couple of weeks, at least one other involving a half-demon that he knew of, that hopefully she wouldn't realize his wedding was unlisted. That would be _all _he needed, to accidentally 'out' himself at the nightclub. 'Future-husband to Higurashi daughter seen flirting at dance club night before wedding'…yeah, he'd definitely rather keep that one out of the papers if at all possible.

Kagome nodded her understanding, not faulting the guy for not wanting to give away the specific date, lest he reveal his identity to her. Though, judging by the man's appearance she could easily tell that he was a half-demon, and if memory served there was only one wedding coming up in the next few days that involved a half-demon. Though then again on the other hand, who was to say that hers was the only wedding not in the news? Either way, she could respect the guy's desire for whatever anonymity there was to be had given their high status lifestyles. That was why she loved coming to this nightclub so much, because it was sort of a safe haven for people like them. It wasn't an exclusive club and anybody could get in, but it was common knowledge that high-class people liked to party it up there. Of course, they were usually on the upper level, in one of the private bottle service booths, not down at the main bar mingling with the 'commoners', but that was precisely why Kagome stuck to the bottom floor. For a few hours at a time, she could pretend she was _normal_.If the bartenders knew who she was they certainly weren't telling, in keeping with the unwritten promise of anonymity the establishment offered, and since her face had never really been in the papers or on TV all that much nobody among the average public should recognize her by sight alone; she never gave out her real name.

"Yeah, me too…" she finally answered then, in reference to her wedding also being soon. "Sooner than I'd like." she added, making a face as she took another sip of her drink.

"Better enjoy what's left of our freedom while we can then, right?" Inuyasha commented, just trying to make conversation.

"Definitely."

Standing together beside the bar in peaceful silence for a moment, they each enjoyed the rhythmic dance beat that vibrated throughout the entire club, the twirling and flashing lights making for an almost hypnotic atmosphere. Watching the spliced music videos that were playing on the television monitors littered around the room, Kagome rocked side to side a little, occasionally singing along to some of the lyrics as she continued to sip on her drink, shooting the man beside her the occasional, playful smile, which he always returned, letting her know he wasn't secretly annoyed by her presence as if she had invaded his private space. On the contrary, he seemed to genuinely be enjoying her company.

Finishing her drink, she didn't hesitate to order another one, though she didn't notice the way the man beside her nodded in her direction for a moment with a wink at the bartender when he interjected, ordering a refill for himself as well. Noting with mild surprise how the man beside her let the bartender keep all four bucks in change as a tip, she self-consciously left another dollar herself, not wanting to appear broke or cheap. Now she wished she'd thought to grab more money before leaving her room, though she also had her ATM card on her if need be.

Taking a sip of her second drink, Kagome made a face at the taste, which quickly earned a laugh from the man standing beside her.

"What the hell is this, an eight-count?" she asked with a laugh, taking another cautious sip.

"You're welcome." he answered playfully, more than hinting that he'd directly had something to do with the strength of her drink, which he probably did for all she knew.

"Thanks." she answered with a mild chuckle, sipping her drink a little slower than normal at first until after a couple of minutes she started to notice that she couldn't really taste the sting of alcohol any more. Her tongue had gone numb.

Inuyasha observed as she resumed sipping on her drink at a more normal pace in mild jealousy. Thanks to his demonic healing, little things like getting numb from alcohol took _forever_. He basically had to drink enough that it would put a human man in the hospital before he even felt a buzz, and that was only thanks to being half human, otherwise getting drunk would take even _longer_. But however long it was going to take him he was certainly working on getting there, chugging down his sixth drink before quickly ordering a seventh, while the woman beside him was still working on her second.

Kagome noticed when he quickly finished his drink and ordered another one, but she knew demons could handle more liquor than humans and so it didn't faze her.

Observing all of the drunk people making fools of themselves and loving it out on the dance floor, Kagome took a few power-sips of her drink, nearly emptying the glass in a single go as she finally decided to stop worrying about tomorrow and just live life for the moment, rekindling the adrenaline that she'd felt when originally choosing her outfit. She was wearing tight low-rise blue jeans that showed off her belly button and a black leather corset tank top that showcased her boobs, with matching shin length black leather wide heel boots zipped over her pant legs to complete the look. It was her favorite outfit, and for all she knew she'd never get to wear it again after tonight; her demon husband would probably think it much too scandalous since most demon males were rather possessive when it came to the idea of any other man checking out their woman. So if this was the last time she'd get to wear her favorite corset top in public, she was going to make it worth her while.

Noticing that the half-demon man beside her had also finished his latest drink, she snagged the opportunity while she could before he ordered another one.

"Wanna dance?"

Eyes wide, Inuyasha turned to glance Kagome's way, just to make sure he'd actually heard her right and that she was talking to him. She was smiling at him knowingly, a playful glimmer in her eyes, and he found himself feeling butterflies in his stomach for the first time in ages. No woman had ever just up and asked him to dance before; it figured that when such a miraculous moment came to be it would be tainted with the knowledge that he couldn't actually have her, what with each of them already being promised to another, but as he continued to stare at her stupidly he quickly found the edges of his lips curling up to match her own playful smile.

"Sure, what the hell." he agreed then, setting down his empty glass beside her own before taking her hand and escorting her out onto the dance floor.

Quickly making room for themselves among all of the other bumping, thrusting and spinning bodies, it was easy to find their rhythm with the house techno that was currently playing. The DJ really knew what he was doing, mixing trance electronica with club-mixed versions of the best '80s to modern dance hits.

"By the way, I didn't get your name." Inuyasha said after a moment, really finding himself having a good time with the girl.

"That's not really necessary, is it? I rather like the mystery of not knowing, don't you?"

Rolling it around in his head for a moment, Inuyasha realized that she was right. All things considered, if they exchanged names, even first names only, they would probably realize they'd heard of each other and know specifically who the other person was, and while he wasn't worried about her ratting him out to the paparazzi should she realize his wedding was presently kept under wraps, there was always the possibility of somebody else overhearing them. He wasn't the only man of demon blood in the club, after all.

"Well I've got to call you something, got a nickname that's never made it to the tabloids?" he asked her then.

Thinking about it a moment, Kagome giggled playfully and replied with, "Wench."

Laughing outright, Inuyasha couldn't help the canine reaction of tilting his head to the side a bit as he gazed at her as if questioning her sanity. "Wench? You serious?"

Shrugging it off, Kagome explained with a tipsy smile, "I like to go to the Renaissance Faire when it comes to town, and I always dress up as a bar wench, so that ends up being what most of the guys there call me as I meander about. I've got a corset similar to this one with no straps."

"Well you've certainly got the body for it." _Oh shit_… he thought in mild panic. _Did I just say that out loud? _It would appear the alcohol was at least starting to affect his mouth.

Kagome only laughed again, not offended by his comment and finding his panicked eyes just too funny. Briefly striking a pose, she gushed out "Thank you!" with another giggle before getting back into the beat of the music. She was definitely starting to catch a buzz.

Shaking his head in amusement, then, Inuyasha shrugged after a minute and said, "All right, Wench, you can call me Dog-boy," explaining, "It's one of the many things a wolf buddy of mine used to call me growing up. Mutt-face is slightly less complimentary." Crinkling his nose at Kouga's favorite insult for him, he mentally smiled as 'Wench' laughed good-naturedly at his joke.

"Dog-boy it is. I guess that answers what kind of demon you are."

"Half." he confessed nervously, wanting to be honest. He was caught off guard by her casual demeanor.

"Oh, I already figured you were half, since if you were full you would have elfin ears instead of the animal ears on your head." she explained matter-of-factly, not so drunk yet that her speech was slurred although it was obvious she was starting to loosen up and lose her inhibitions. "I just couldn't decide if you were a dog or a cat and I didn't want to seem rude by asking. It's not like it really matters. I was just curious." she added, earning a surprised look from the man.

He couldn't believe his ears; he couldn't believe _her _reaction to them. She practically had none! She already knew he was a half-demon because of them, but she didn't seem disturbed by that knowledge _at all_. Why the hell did she have to be betrothed to somebody else? Oh sure, technically so was he, but if the woman before him were available he would kindly tell his father to go fuck himself and that the wedding was off. Mentally sighing, though, Inuyasha knew he couldn't start any trouble along those lines. Especially since the woman before him was _also _in an arranged marriage. The shockwaves and ripple effect would be devastating, especially if she actually had a mind to take him up on his offer. And what, exactly, was his offer? There was no sense in trading one marriage to a total stranger for another. It wasn't like he was head over heels in love with the girl, they'd just barely met and he didn't really know anything about her. But he would have liked the opportunity to _get _to know her…

_Oh well…I guess I should just be thankful for the opportunity to enjoy my last night of freedom in such beautiful company_.

That thought quickly had him realizing he needed another drink, and so did she.

"Oi, Wench!" he chimed in then with a horrible old-world accent, making Kagome snort out a laugh. "Fetch me another ale, woman!"

Kagome was scrambling to think of a witty comeback, but before she could dish anything out the man before her dropped his own routine to reach for his wallet, assuring her, "Nah, I'm buying." as he pulled out a twenty.

He turned, as if to make his own way to the bar, but Kagome quickly snatched the money from his hands in that moment, unknowingly both surprising and impressing him with her reflexes, as she answered with her own accent, "One Sir Daniels with his squire Cola, coming right up M'lord!"

Laughing, Inuyasha shouted over the ruckus as she walked away "Let him keep the change!"

Kagome glanced over her shoulder, wanting to be sure she'd heard him right, and he nodded while holding up eight fingers. Tilting her head with a thoughtful smile she made her way over to the same part of the bar they'd been at before, so it was the same bartender as she ordered their new round. He started to hand her back the change but she held up her hand in pause and gestured over her shoulder. "Compliments of the man in red." she explained, referring to Inuyasha's crimson red silk shirt. Tapping the money on the bar in thanks he stuck it in the tip jar and Kagome offered him a final smile before turning with their drinks to head back to where she'd left Inuyasha out on the dance floor.

She did have to admit, the man looked good in red. The long sleeves of his silk shirt were slightly billowy, though the cuffs around his wrists were buttoned, keeping them in place. The top two buttons of the collared shirt were undone, though, showing off just the right amount of chest that was accented even further by the manly beaded necklace he wore underneath. His pants were jet black denim, with black shoes completing the look, not wanting to draw any attention away from his vibrant red shirt, which his sparkling silver hair contrasted against breathtakingly well. Even the dog-ears, while most people would probably find them a turn off in their abnormal appearance, Kagome couldn't help but to swoon over. Honestly, she thought they made the man look that much more exotic. And he was a good tipper on top of it all; that said a lot about his personality right there. Whoever he was marrying was a lucky girl.

Seeing her coming back with their drinks, Inuyasha headed over to an unoccupied side table along side the dance floor where they could set their drinks down but still keep an eye on them.

"Your ale, Sir Dog-boy." she teased with a bow, sitting his glass down in front of him.

"You didn't really have to go get them, you know, I would've done it. It's the guy's job to get the lady a drink in a club, ain't it?" he said as she took a sip from her own drink.

Waving off his concern Kagome pointed out, "You _did _pay for them," before adding, "And besides…I'm going to have to get used to serving drinks and the like, anyway."

"Future husband is one of those, huh?"

"From what I've been told, yeah, he's expecting me to be all prim and proper and shit. Do I _look _like 'obedient wife' material to you?"

Chuckling at her language, Inuyasha shook his head before muttering, "The guy should just accept you the way you are."

"_Thank _you." Kagome answered in exasperation, still mildly stewing over the fight she'd had with her father when he'd first told her about the contract.

"So how much do you really know about this guy?"

Inuyasha didn't know why he wanted to know, why he wanted to torture himself by chatting casually about the guy who was going to be taking this beautiful woman away from him, but deep down inside it was as if he needed to make sure she was at least going to be taken care of. He hated the thought of her getting stuck with some bastard who would treat her more like his property than his partner. But maybe there was something else about the guy that was nicer, that would make it okay. He had to fight down his natural canine instinct to be jealous and protective; this woman wasn't his and he couldn't go acting like she was. But still, he cared.

Taking another sip of her drink, Kagome was unsure whether or not to admit that she was marrying a demon. True, there were no such weddings presently in the news, but because it _wasn't _in the news it should theoretically be impossible for him to guess who she was based on that little tidbit alone. All he would know was that she was a somebody who wasn't any of the somebodies who _were _in the news. What harm could that do? Still, though, a little voice in the back of her head kept whispering to her to be careful what she said, lest her mouth start running away from her. He might be so curious that he'd end up asking her _which _demon family she was marrying into, and _that _was something she _couldn't_ reveal. If he somehow figured it out all on his own then she could at least feign innocence if the paparazzi showed up tomorrow, but if she just up and blurted it out she knew she'd be in trouble with her father. It was a courtesy to the Taisho family that they had agreed to keep it out of the news, because _they _didn't want to deal with the human press. If she thought her fiancé's family wouldn't care and that it was only _her _dad that had wanted to avoid it then _she _wouldn't care and she'd probably even call up the magazines herself, but the last thing she wanted to do was get off on the wrong foot with her future husband, if he somehow found out she'd gone directly against their wishes for anonymity, and so doing her first duty as the good and obedient wife she needed to be she would respect her mystery fiancé's wishes and keep her lips sealed. At least with regard to any details that could give away either his or her identity.

Taking a drink, she thought carefully about her words for a minute before speaking, wanting to get the subject away from her fiancé as quickly as possible. "Honestly, I don't know that much about him, but from what I _have _been told, he's been raised very strictly and will not put up with a disobedient party girl. I was given very short notice to 'reform' my uncouth behavior…so naturally I snuck out to go dancing." she finished with a giggle, taking another long sip.

"Heh, my kinda girl, indeed." Inuyasha repeated, holding out his glass in toast again, taking a nice long drink after she touched her glass with his.

"My bride-to-be is one of those chicks who's been raised from day one to be the perfect, obedient little wife, which basically means her parents and tutors have bred the life and soul right out of her. That's not the kind of woman I want, but it doesn't look like I have much of a choice."

"Ugh, 'speak only when spoken to' and all that crap." Kagome groaned in sympathy. "I'll put on an act if somebody important is over visiting or whatever, but my parents have always known that I'm a rebel at heart. I think this wedding was Dad's way of finally getting the final word. At least I wasn't forced to break up with a boyfriend because of it. For the last year or so now I've been enjoying the single life."

"Well _that's _good." Inuyasha commented in genuine relief on her behalf, before a worried look overtook him. "I sure hope my fiancée didn't lose the love of her life when her father signed the contract. I hadn't even thought of that. It's bad enough she's getting stuck with a half-demon, man…"

Shaking his head and taking another drink, Inuyasha didn't notice Kagome's shocked expression at first. Finally feeling her wide eyes upon him, he glanced her way a little defensively as he grumbled, "What?"

"You don't…you don't honestly feel that way about yourself, do you?" Kagome asked, not having been sure she'd heard him right at first over the music. "I mean, there's nothing wrong with being a half-demon."

He snorted.

"You sure you'd sing that same tune if you were being forced to marry one?"

As soon as the words left his lips Inuyasha mentally cursed his stupidity as he took note of her hesitant and mildly defensive expression. What if she were the girl marrying that half-demon that was in the news? What was his name? Jinenji something? Even though that was kind of unofficially who he was pretending to be, he hadn't actually said so, which was a good thing because judging by her expression her fiancé wasn't human. If she were part of that wedding then that also meant that she'd probably already reached the conclusion that _his _wedding wasn't in the news, not that that really mattered all that much by that point, since they'd each agreed to openly not worry about who the other person was, even going so far as to deliberately keep their names a secret from each other. If he had just inadvertently discovered who she was, he wouldn't let that ruin the fun they'd been having, but before he could backpedal and think of a way to apologize for his cruel words, Kagome beat him to it with a retort of her own.

"Hypothetically, if the man I was supposed to marry was a half-demon, that wouldn't change how I felt about it. I'm not racist, _Dog-boy_…" she emphasized, though with a playful wink to let him know she wasn't really that pissed. Taking a nice long sip from her drink, she decided to go for broke and added, "I won't tell one way or the other, because I like the mystery and so this is all hypothetical and you have no proof I said anything…but the man I'm marrying, he could be a human, or a half-demon, or maybe even a _full _demon, but what_ever _he is, know that his species doesn't matter to me. I'm just pissed that I'm being forced to marry _anybody_." With that she finished off her drink, though she didn't immediately make a move to go get another one, feeling slightly woozy all of a sudden.

Inuyasha blinked in surprise for a moment at her words, caught off guard but also truly touched by her passion. Not many human women felt that way. He'd learned _that _lesson the hard way when his ex-girlfriend Kikyou, whom he'd honestly thought had been able to see past the species barrier, just up and broke his heart one day. There had been a time when he'd thought she'd been 'the one', and his father had even approved of the union because she was high-status enough, but he'd inadvertently destroyed their relationship the day he'd proposed to her. Apparently, 'fooling around' with a half-demon had been no big deal to her, and she'd enjoyed pissing off her own dad by flaunting their relationship in his face. She had been using him as a pawn in her little game of rebellion, and while she had liked him well enough, she'd had no intention of becoming his wife. When he'd asked her, crushed and with his heart practically bleeding right out of his chest, why she didn't want to marry him if she liked being with him so much, she'd twisted the knife and shoved it in even deeper by telling him she could never take her game with her parents so far as to actually allow herself to have part-demon children. And here he'd thought she'd been on birth control only because she hadn't wanted to have _premarital _children. At least Kikyou had had the decency to apologize for hurting him, confessing she'd never meant to take things so far that he would fall for her as hard as he had. She'd thought he'd known that theirs had been a more casual fling, and she had understood it when he'd immediately broken it off with her, unable to _resume _their 'casual fling' after having his hopes and dreams torn to shreds.

Quickly shaking such painful memories free from the forefront of his mind, Inuyasha took another sip of his drink, rolling an ice cube around in his mouth for a moment as he rolled Wench's words around in his head. Hypothetically, of course, her future husband could even be a full demon. How about that? But there were no upcoming weddings, that he knew of at least, between a human and a full-blooded demon. Of course, she hadn't _said _she was marrying a demon, and she had most likely just tossed that out there to cover the full spectrum. Her future husband was either that half-demon in the news, or, and probably much more likely, he was a human and she just honestly had no qualms with mixing the races. Perhaps that look she'd given him was because a previous boyfriend of hers had been either full or half demon, and so she actually did have experience dating outside of her species. For the briefest of seconds some nagging little voice in the back of his mind tried to remind him of how he'd been worried that the woman he was going to marry tomorrow might think that _he _was a pureblood, but right at that moment the _very _distinctive beat of an old Timberlake song started blasting through the speakers, causing just about everyone on the dance floor to cheer in enjoyment, Wench included.

"Oh my God I _love _this song!" she squealed, grabbing his clawed hand and pulling him out of his thoughts as she dragged him away from their table enough so that they had room to dance.

Inuyasha had to admit, this chick was definitely bringing sexy back, not that he'd even realized sexy had gone anywhere until meeting her. He was surprised when she turned around facing away from him, despite it being an instruction in the song, as she encouraged him to dance with his body flush up against her back as a few other inebriated couples were doing, but he couldn't honestly think of a reason not to and so he quickly got his own sexy on, showing her how it was done.

With the lights and the music twisting all around them, not to mention her last two drinks each having been at least as strong as two drinks themselves, meaning if she could still do basic math it was as if she'd had five already, Kagome wasn't thinking much of anything as she lost herself to the rhythm. At least she was still sober enough that she still _had _rhythm. Dog-boy certainly wasn't complaining. She would be his own personal lap dancer for his private bachelor party, then. You could give a lap dance while the guy was standing up, couldn't you? She was certainly trying…

Feeling a rush of adrenaline overtake him at the way she started rubbing her ass against his groin, Inuyasha didn't push her away, instead tightening his hands on her hips as he moved with her, letting her feel for herself through their jeans exactly what she did to him as he sang along to some of the lyrics.

"I'll let you whip me if I misbehave…" he echoed suggestively, thrusting his hips a little.

Kagome 'eep'ed in surprise, but then instead of getting scared off she spun around, winding her right leg in between his so that she was straddling his thigh as she continued to move with him. He could feel her heat burning his leg as he held her to him with his right hand at the small of her back to prevent her from falling as she tilted her body backwards a little, grinding herself up and down as if riding him, and he easily kept the pace. They were practically fucking in the middle of the dance floor, but since everyone else was too nobody noticed or cared; it was like some kind of weird swingers' club orgy where everyone kept their clothes on, and he was loving every minute of it. While he'd seen this sort of phenomenon happen before out on the dance floor when the right song came on, he'd never been a participant before, and the fact that this wench was a willing participant with _him _just blew his mind. He would blow his load if he wasn't careful, though, with the way she started grinding against his erection. Damn it, how'd she know he liked to tuck it down the right leg? Lucky guess.

Moving his right hand from her back to her left hip, he tried to silently tell her to cool it a little with the cock riding, but then the sneaky wench lifted her left hand and started screwing with his right ear, and he nearly lost it right then and there.

"Stop that before I take _you _in the back VIP and fuck your brains out." he panted. Oh yeah, he was finally drunk. He wasn't falling-down drunk, but his higher thought process was definitely compromised at the moment. Too bad he didn't care.

Giggling, Kagome deliberately gave his ear one final tweak before finally releasing him, though she didn't stop what she was doing with her hips. She rocked her whole body against him, her hips swaying backward and forward before the movement traveled up her abdomen and into her chest, as she practically slithered against him, pressing her breasts against his chest while continuing to grind her crotch against his leg.

"And what if I _want _you to fuck my brains out?"

He couldn't have heard her right.

"But…but you're getting married soon, and so am I…"

"So? Consider it a combo bachelor/bachelorette party."

"I don't think guys usually get _laid _at their bachelor parties."

"At the good ones they do." she replied with a giggle.

"You're drunk." he pointed out bluntly, even as they continued to grind to the remainder of the song.

"So…what's your point? You think I'll regret it? Fuck no. I know what I'm doing."

If he had been sober he would have understood what a horrible idea it was, but since he was buzzed too…

"You gotta car here?"

"No, took a taxi. You?"

"Driver dropped me off, hang on a sec."

Finally managing to pry her off of his leg, the song had changed by then anyway, he escorted her over to the quietest corner of the club before pulling out his cell phone and hitting redial.

"I'm ready for you to come get me." he said when the driver answered. "And don't address me by name when you get here…" Casting a suggestive wink Kagome's way he added, "I'm incognito."

Locking his phone, he slipped it back in his pocket before looking Kagome straight in the eyes and stating, "Last chance to back out, Wench. Once I get you in that car you're all mine, at least for tonight."

Her reply was only another giggle, before quickly scurrying over to the bar and ordering one last round of drinks for them since it would take a few minutes for his driver to get there. Shaking his head in amusement, he pulled out another twenty and headed over to the bar as well, coming up behind her to pay for the drinks, not to mention he liked the feel of standing _directly _behind her. Pressing his body flush against hers, he growled possessively when she unknowingly tilted her neck to the side, as if submitting to him in the canine fashion. He had to resist the urge to lick her neck. He needed to calm the fuck down for a minute, not get himself even more riled up. His driver would be there soon, after all, and the last thing he wanted was for Miroku to come into the club looking for him only to find him and the wench making out in some corner. He'd never live it down.

If he had taken any other car he would have just dismissed the driver altogether and called a random taxi, but then he never would have taken another car. He didn't usually use any of his father's drivers at all, he had his _own _car, after all, but the whole point of tonight had been to get drunk and so being responsible he had called Miroku up on his cell to play the chauffeur that he was. Miroku was technically supposed to be off for the night and he couldn't really order him around, but Miroku was also his friend, and so the human man had agreed wholeheartedly to help him out once he'd learned of his plans for one last night of fun before the wedding, just as Inuyasha had known he would. He trusted Miroku with his life. He was his best friend, and he knew that the human man wouldn't rat him out. Besides, when he'd dropped him off at the club earlier Miroku had actually suggested that he _should _try to pick up a girl for the night, for one last hurrah before married life. Being off also meant that Miroku had come straight from _his _house and was using his own personal car instead of one of the limos, which had worked out just fine for Inuyasha because he hadn't wanted to arrive in a limo, anyway. Miroku's car was a Lincoln, so it was still really nice; all of their drivers had been given luxury town cars as their own personal vehicles for just such an occasion, if in a pinch they needed one of them and there was no time to switch out for a limousine.

Taking a deep breath to try and calm his frazzled nerves, Inuyasha knew the only thing he really had to fear from allowing Miroku to take them back to his apartment was the relentless teasing he would face whenever the two of them were alone. Since he was coming straight from home, and the man lived alone, there was nobody else aware of what he was doing to wonder or question him as to why he'd needed to leave in the middle of the night to go pick anybody up. Nobody besides Miroku even knew he'd gone out to the club that night at all, and he planned on keeping it that way. Of course, there was always the possibility that his father or brother would be able to smell on him what had happened, but really, what business was it of theirs, anyway? His last free night before the wedding was his to do with as he pleased. Fuck 'em.

Better yet, fuck the wench… Wrapping his left arm around her body he pressed his palm against her bare stomach, rocking against her a little as he took a giant gulp of his drink, finishing it in one chug. He needed to kill as many brain cells as possible.

Getting a text from Miroku a couple of minutes later that he was outside, Inuyasha chuckled as Kagome pouted when he took her half empty glass away from her and sat it on the bar. She'd had enough, anyway.

"Your chariot awaits, M'lady." he said with a horrible accent, as he looped his arm through hers more for her own stability than in a grandiose gesture of chivalry.

She giggled.

Stepping out into the night air, Inuyasha didn't miss Miroku's knowing smirk the minute his friend and employee spotted him walking with a lady towards the car.

"Not one word." he threatened semi-playfully as Miroku opened the back door for them.

"Of course not…Sir." he stated, adding that last part for good measure since he normally wasn't that formal with his boss' younger son. His own father was an employee to the Taisho family and he and Inuyasha had practically grown up together. Their differences had never bothered either one of them. He actually felt sorry for his friend, that he was getting forced into a wedding against his will. Mr. Taisho's eldest son, Sesshoumaru, had chosen his own wife, though of course Kagura was a lady of good standing and a very powerful wind-demon. But he'd always thought that Inuyasha would be spared the circus act of an arranged marriage, too, that he'd be allowed to one day find the woman he wanted all on his own. Miroku had never felt so blessed to be less privileged.

The ride back to Inuyasha's apartment was awkwardly silent. Miroku had no idea what kind of a story the half-demon had fabricated for his lady friend and so he didn't dare risk blowing his cover, and Inuyasha had no idea what to say to Miroku that wouldn't make him feel any less embarrassed than he already did, so he just stayed quiet. Kagome, on the other hand, was too drunk to notice the awkward tension between the two men as she leaned herself against her date for the night, mentally undressing him while playfully fiddling with the beads around his neck.

Arriving at his apartment building, a place that _thankfully _did not have a doorman since the whole point of moving out of his parents' manor had been because he'd wanted to be able to at least pretend he was normal and not one of the richest men in the country, Inuyasha dismissed Miroku for the night feeling secure in the knowledge that nobody else who knew who he _was _would know he'd taken a woman home with him. The building, while nice, was within the price range of upper middle-class, and it was also predominantly human, meaning most of the people who lived there probably wouldn't even know who he was aside from vaguely recalling hearing his name before even if he did go around introducing himself with his real name, which he did not, going by Yash instead which was a legitimate nickname. He just hadn't wanted to use that nickname with the wench for fear that she would put two and two together, considering she would be much more likely to be familiar with the other people at her level, even including the demons, than the average human commoner.

A short ride up the elevator quickly had them arriving at his floor, and keeping his hand gently cupping Kagome's arm although she was doing a really good job of walking on her own, especially considering the boots she had own, he guided her down the hall to his door.

"This is it, bachelor pad sweet bachelor pad. Guess I'll probably be saying goodbye to this place pretty soon, too." he stated with a bummed out tone as he opened the door and gestured for her to enter first.

"But what a way to say goodbye." she commented playfully, twirling around as soon as she heard the door close behind her to pin him against it, kissing him fiercely.

Shocked stupid, it took Inuyasha a moment to realize what was happening and to respond, though when he did respond he quickly took control of the situation, reaching up with both hands to place one against the back of her head and one against her ass as he crushed her pelvis against his while devouring her mouth hungrily. Kagome mewled into the kiss, easily relinquishing her command as she submitted to the dominance of the demonic man against her. His excitement, which had softened to half-mast during the brief car ride, was quickly back with a vengeance, and feeling his erection pressing against her through their jeans she rubbed herself against him, smirking at the animalistic growl that bubbled up from deep within his chest.

The next thing Kagome knew, she found herself swept up into a pair of inhumanly strong arms, as Inuyasha strode confidently with her into his bedroom. Laying her down on the bed he quickly crawled on top of her, towering over her possessively as he resumed kissing her senseless. He was just as senseless as she was by that point, in no way, shape or form willing or able to listen to reason. Feeling the woman below him try to slip her fingers up between their bodies, craftily working loose the buttons on his shirt, Inuyasha pulled away from her only enough to grant her better access, as he quickly worked on unlacing her corset. Feeling his shirt fall open and the wench's hands begin to eagerly explore the exposed plains of his chest, Inuyasha lost his patients with her top and quickly pulled it up and over her head once he had the laces loose enough for the garment to no longer conform to her frame. Having clearly been wearing no bra underneath, not that she'd needed one with the way the top had been designed, Inuyasha smirked in victory to note that Kagome's bare breasts looked just as impressive without the aid of the leather giving them shape. She hadn't been faking it with padding.

And neither was he, he knew the woman below him knew as he felt her left hand creep lower to start rubbing his cock through his jeans, her fingers tracing every inch of him. The scent of her arousal immediately increased in intensity, and he breathed in deeply through his nose, savoring the fragrance.

Pulling away from her after a moment, Inuyasha made quick work of the buttons on his cuffs so that he could remove his shirt, opting to leave his necklace on since she'd seemed to like it earlier before then quickly shuffling around into a sitting position so that he could reach for and remove his shoes and socks. Blinking, Kagome came back into herself a little bit at the sight of him continuing to undress, though she was only jarred into action as she quickly reached for her own boots, unzipping them. Inuyasha was topless and barefoot by that time, so stepping off the bed to stand beside it, he smirked as she playfully offered him her feet, reaching for each of her boots to tug them off one at a time, her socks soon to follow. Seeing the way Wench reached for the fly of her jeans, next, he mirrored her action by quickly unfastening the button on his own.

So okay, maybe they were moving a little faster then he normally would have liked, but these were not normal circumstances and he definitely wanted to do this thing before he lost his nerve.

Reaching for his zipper, his action was interrupted for only a moment as she giggled, stating, "Now I'll get to see if the carpet matches the drapes."

Smirking in her direction, he informed her boldly, "There isn't any carpet. It's all _hard wood_, baby."

With that he unzipped his jeans and stepped out of them, revealing that he had no underwear on underneath, and also no pubic hair. The truth was he shaved because his hair grew in more like fur, and after Kikyou had been mildly disturbed by the difference he had started shaving to appease her, and had never bothered to stop.

Openly ogling his naked form, his 'hard wood' on full display, Kagome was just as eager to proceed as he was, quickly tugging down her own jeans from her position still lying on the bed, giving her hips a little raise to clear her bottom, revealing that she'd also gone commando when she exposed a daintily trimmed patch of raven curls. Damn, just one more thing he liked about the girl. Noticing that she seemed to be having mild coordination issues he quickly decided to help her out, reaching for her pant legs and giving them a tug until finally, she was as naked as he was. He crawled back up on top of her body then, murmuring a playful "Where were we?" between kisses.

"I think we were somewhere…around…here." Kagome answered breathlessly as she broke away between kisses, reaching for him with her right hand and getting him into position; he was surprised by the feel of just how ready she was for him.

Unhesitantly, he started to press forward, noting with relief that she wasn't a virgin. Not that he'd even considered the possibility that she might be until that very moment; she certainly hadn't been acting like it. Though he didn't really take her for a whore, either. He got the distinct impression that she never, under normal circumstances, agreed to go home with strange men she'd just met, but as he'd already told himself once in the last few minutes, these circumstances were _not _normal.

"Are you sure?" he asked her then with a teasing glint in his eyes. "I think we were around…_here!" _he stated, thrusting himself fully inside.

She arched below him at the unexpected intrusion, gasping in unmistakable pleasure. Gods, how long had it been since she'd been with a man? Six months? A year? She'd lost track. Though of course, that was if you could call Hojo a _man_, she mentally snickered. He had barely been able to keep up with her and ultimately had been the one to break it off with her, but the fact that it hadn't even fazed her all that much had proven to Kagome that he hadn't been the right man for her to begin with. That was when her father had first started giving her a hard time about her attitude, threatening that she needed to shape up. God, she kept her nose clean under the spotlight, so what the hell did he care if she liked to have a good time, as long as nobody was gossiping about it the next day? It wasn't like she was doing drugs or crashing cars or stumbling drunkenly into the backs of limos in short skirts with no panties on, giving free beaver shots to anyone with an Internet connection. To listen to her father rant one would think she was a lot worse than she really was, but that was just because he was so conservative.

And now here she was getting her brains fucked out by a total stranger the night before her wedding to a demonic man who would probably be able to smell Dog-boy all over her. Oops. Mentally giggling, she honestly didn't give a shit what future hubby or his family were going to think in that moment, she was too busy getting her brains fucked out to worry about keeping enough of them in her head to form coherent thoughts.

"Harder!" she cried out then, and Inuyasha was happy to oblige.

He'd paused for only a second after completing their joining, mostly so that his own body could adjust to the shock though he had also gauged her reaction to make sure he hadn't accidentally hurt her. Immediately able to tell that she'd enjoyed it immensely, he'd started moving right away, thrusting his hips at a fairly steady rhythm. Apparently, Wench liked it rough, though, which was just fine with him as he immediately increased his tempo at her command, grabbing her legs and flinging her ankles over his shoulders as he raised himself up on his knees, wrapping his arms around her legs to grip them against his body as he started pounding.

"Gah!"

Quickly pulling himself away from her, he didn't want to finish just yet, flinging her legs off of him as he pulled himself fully out and away from her, panting heavily. Kagome blinked up at him in dazed confusion, but meeting her eyes for only a moment his golden orbs quickly drifted lower, examining the full length of her nude form as she lied before his hungry gaze, and hungry for her he was in that moment.

"Gah!" Kagome cried out that time, as Inuyasha suddenly dove between her legs.

Pinning her legs open with his hands, his demonic strength was easily able to keep her completely immobile, as she could do nothing but endure his delicious torture. She tried to jerk and flinch below him, but his hands holding her down prevented even that much movement from her hips, so the shockwaves quickly traveled up to Kagome's upper body, causing her shoulders to rise off the bed and her head to shake madly from side to side. Finally, her entire body convulsed as she sat up while _screaming _her release, her face so scrunched up and her voice so horse that coupled with her posture one might assume she was actually giving birth to him rather than experiencing the best orgasm of her entire life.

He pulled away once he could tell that she honestly couldn't take it any more, and she collapsed back against the bed, sweaty and exhausted. He didn't give her any time to recuperate. Quickly, Inuyasha aligned himself and plunged back home, loving the sound of her sharp inhale. Picking up right where he'd left off, he refused to let her climax fade completely. She shook and jerked below him, doing her best to match his pace as she raised her hips in time with his thrusts, her feet planted flat on the bed with knees bent. Gripping both of his forearms where he had his hands pressed against the bed at either side of her, holding himself up above her, Kagome used her grip of him as leverage to push and pull her entire body along the bed to better meet his thrusts, knowing that tugging on his arms in such a way wouldn't dislodge his balance with his demonic strength. She slammed herself down and up to meet him with every thrust, giving as good as he did.

Definitely not a dead fish.

It didn't take long at that pace for his own release to creep back up on him, and feeling it build within him Inuyasha knew precisely when he passed the point of no return, making the split-second decision to yank himself back out of her again, reaching for himself with a fist as he spilled himself on her stomach. For a few silent moments Inuyasha remained that way, suspended above Kagome's body with all of his body weight on his outstretched left arm, his right hand still gripping himself down below. He just couldn't, in good conscience, risk the possibility of her getting pregnant. Even though he'd made a mess, he was sure she understood and appreciated the gesture.

"I'll get you a towel." he murmured quietly, leaning down to give her a gentle kiss on the nose, to which she giggled before mumbling, "M'kay."

Stepping down onto the floor with shaky feet, it took him a minute to gather himself, that having been just about the strongest orgasm he could recall experiencing in quite some time, if he'd _ever _experienced one quite that strong before. Finally making his way down the hall and into the bathroom, he returned a few short minutes later with a damp washcloth.

"Mmm…warm." Kagome murmured appreciatively as he carefully wiped her clean.

"It'd be pretty dicky of me to use cold water, wouldn't it?" he teased.

"I'm surprised you didn't _lick _me clean." she teased back.

He paused, blinking at her in surprise. _Damn_…

"I…had thought that might gross you out or something."

"Why?" she asked, genuinely confused and marginally less buzzed than she'd been earlier, though not by much. "D'you really think I'd think you were gay or somethin' after _that?" _she commented with a chuckle. "You're a dog, right? Or half, whatever. But so that's different then."

Fucking hell, was there no end to how much he was going to discover he absolutely _loved _about this woman? He almost caught himself promising 'next time' with a seductive smirk before he quickly bit his tongue; there wasn't going to _be _a next time. There probably shouldn't have been a _this _time, either, but what was done was done and he wasn't going to dwell on it. Finishing cleaning her up with the towel, then, since he was almost done anyway, he tossed the rag into his dirty laundry basket before asking her if she needed him to give her a ride some place.

"Yeah, but not yet. I'd rather sleep here for a few hours if you don't mind. I can sneak back into my room at like five, if you don't mind setting your alarm."

"What are you, like sixteen?" he teased, reaching for his phone and setting it to go off at half past four.

"Twenty-three, though you'd think I was only sixteen from how my father talks to me."

"I'm sure he means well."

"I guess…" She didn't sound too convinced, and he didn't really feel like getting into it. Why spoil the mood?

Crawling back into bed, then, Inuyasha smirked as Kagome giggled when he pulled her flush against him, hugging her to his body in a protective, spooning embrace. She was too sleepy and tipsy to notice her faux pas when she murmured, "I could get used to this." under her breath. She was asleep only a few minutes later.

Sighing despondently, Inuyasha closed his eyes and prayed for a dreamless sleep.

oooOoooOooo

"_**I was born this way, hey! I was born this way, hey! I'm on the right track, baby, I was-" **_

"Ugh…" Kagome groaned, blindly stumbling towards the sound of Lady Gaga until she found her phone in her pants on the floor. Why were her pants on the floor? And why did her head feel like she was in a Tilt-a-Whirl?

And who the hell was calling her at…four in the Goddamned morning?

"Hello?" she croaked.

"Kagome Higurashi!" her father scolded loudly, causing her to pull her phone away from her ear in distress.

Everything that had happened the night before quickly came rushing back to her, as she cast a nervous glance back towards the bed to notice the sleepy eyes of Dog-boy blinking her way in open shock, his ears swiveled forward. Oh God…he'd heard. But one disaster at a time.

"Yes Dad?"

"Don't you 'Yes Dad' me young lady. Just where the hell are you? You're getting married in twelve hours!"

"It doesn't take twelve hours to put on a wedding dress."

"Don't you get smart with me!"

Cringing, she decided it would be best to try and avoid getting into a full-blown argument with her father over the phone while in the company of her one-night-stand. "Sorry, uh…well I went out…with some friends last night, and it was late and I got tired so I just crashed at a friend's house. I was going to come home in like an hour, honest. The alarm's set."

"You've got no business parading around at those nightclubs when you're getting married to-"

"Yes, I know…" she quickly interrupted, eyes wide in panic. "It was just one last time. It'll never happen again, I promise."

She could hear a good deal of grumbling on his end of the line, and another voice in the background, which meant that her mother was also awake. What either of them were doing up at this hour she had no idea, though knowing her father he had probably poked his head into her room just to make sure she was home, and then all hell had broken loose when she hadn't been.

"Well, which friend are you staying with? I'll come get you."

Eyes widening in panic yet again, she didn't care if it was going to put her back in a little worse standing with her father, she couldn't lie, and she could _not _tell him the truth. "I can come home on my own, thank you. I'll be there in an hour." and with that, she hung up the phone before he could say anything more. If he were truly angry he'd be calling her back in only a matter of seconds to continue the fight, but as the seconds turned into first one minute and then two and her cell still didn't ring, she finally breathed a sigh of relief, realizing her mother must have calmed him down somewhat. Her mom had always been on her side, at least as much as she was able to be.

With disaster number one averted, it was time to face the music, otherwise known as disaster number two.

Inuyasha had since clicked on the bedside lamp, so there was more than enough light for Kagome to see by as he continued to gaze at her in shocked disbelief. He obviously knew who she was. She gulped. How to handle this one…

Inuyasha was so caught up in his own surprise that he didn't even register the look of unbridled horror on Kagome's face as she gulped while awkwardly trying to figure out where to place her hands after it finally dawned on her she was standing in the middle of his bedroom stark naked. He just kept on replaying the first part of that phone conversation in his head over and over again. Had he heard right? He knew he had. Her ring tone had woken him before she'd answered so he'd been wide-awake for the sound of her father's voice shouting at her through the tiny speaker.

"You're Kagome Higurashi?" he asked suddenly, with obvious shock in his voice.

She cringed.

"Please, you can't say anything. My fiancé's family doesn't want it turning into a media circus, and while I know it doesn't look like I care all that much, I can't just-"

"Kagome…" he interrupted, unable to wipe the growing smile off his face. "Kagome it's me, _I'm _Inuyasha Taisho."

Her open mouth snapped closed with an audible click, a 'does not compute' look clearly swirling in her eyes. Chuckling at her shell-shocked expression he climbed out of bed and reached for his wallet in his pants, showing her his ID.

She stared at the little rectangular piece of plastic in her hands for what seemed like eternity, though Inuyasha didn't mind, since it was giving him an unobstructed view of her boobs.

"I…you…"

"You may now fuck the bride." he stated with a chuckle.

Laughing almost hysterically, Kagome suddenly dropped his ID before launching herself into his arms, kissing him again though it was nothing like the night before. She wasn't trying to eat his face this time, the kiss much more tender and romantic, and he didn't hesitate to respond, wrapping his arms around her tenderly while returning the emotion of the kiss.

Finally pulling away for air after a moment, Kagome murmured breathlessly, "I…I think…I owe my father an apology."

Laughing, Inuyasha pointed out, "Don't forget this whole arrangement was originally _my _dad's idea."

"Yes, for the 'good of the family' and all that." Kagome commented sarcastically though with a playful edge to it.

"Nah…that's just an excuse. Honestly? I think he was just trying to buy me a bride, sick of seeing me mope around in my pity-party for one. Of course, Dad's always bought his sons the best, so when it came to a wife it wasn't going to be any different. _You're _the best."

She crinkled her nose.

"On paper, maybe, but I'm nothing like how I'm supposed to be. I'm not all prim and proper or-"

Laughing again, Inuyasha interrupted with, "Which is even better!"

Leaning down to kiss her again, he gave a breast a playful tweak afterwards, reminding her of their mutual nakedness. She blushed a little at his brazenness but to her credit she didn't smack his hand away or try to cover herself.

"Somebody up there has got to be on my side, because this is like being dragged to the hoity-toitiest restaurant but then finding out they have a gourmet version of a burger and fries. I _prefer _a burger and fries over caviar, don't you?"

Smiling, Kagome knew exactly what he was getting at, and the truth of the matter was that she felt the same way.

"Beer taste on a champagne budget, ne?" she joked.

Here she'd been lamenting the loss of a lifestyle, fearing she was going to have to play the part of the obedient wife against her will like a modern-day sex-slave because it would be far too scandalous to continue on with her outlandish behavior after becoming properly wed, and then she went and bumped into her future husband at her favorite nightclub! Bumped into…bump and grind…same difference. But either way, Inuyasha was _clearly _not the strict, professional man her father had portrayed him to be. Although to be fair she doubted her father knew much about his real personality, just as Inuyasha and his family had clearly been told a bunch of lies about her. Each father had told the other man that their child acted precisely the way they were _supposed _to act, while secretly telling that same child to quickly get their act together. It was too fucking perfect.

"Hey…" she commented after a moment, as something suddenly dawned on her. "Then this means you don't have to move out of your bachelor pad if you really like this apartment, at least not right away. I'm still at home so anything will be an improvement over _that_, _trust _me."

He chuckled. "And here I thought you were about to question me on the whole half-demon thing." he commented playfully. "Dad had kind of implied that your father hadn't told you, only that we were a 'demonic family' but nothing more, nothing about what kind of demons we were or that my mother was actually human."

"That's true…" Kagome murmured with a thoughtful expression. "I'd been pissed that he'd decided to keep so much a secret from me, though I'd figured he was doing it on purpose as a punishment of sorts, to get back at me for all of the times I'd displeased him one way or another. He knew it was just killing me walking into the unknown, not even knowing what you were going to look like…which, when dealing with a demon, can be a _big _abstract from the norm. He'd deliberately had me stewing over it, building up all sorts of ungrounded fears in my head. I mean…what if you were a lizard-demon? I mean, I'm not racist, but come on! I would like my partner in bed to be warm-blooded, at the very least. Fur or feathers I could have dealt with, but _scales?"_

Laughing outright at her horrified expression, knowing her only concern in that regard had been bedroom compatibility and that she otherwise was truly not a racist, he pulled Kagome into a tender, _warm _embrace in that moment, softly running his claws through her hair.

"Nope, not a lizard. You've just landed yourself a nice warm, cuddly puppy."

"With a ferocious appetite."

"Oh you have no idea…" he cooed, leaning down to capture her lips once more. They were both pulled out of the moment only a few seconds later when the alarm clock on his phone went off.

"Crap, guess that means it's time to get dressed." she muttered more to herself, still having every intention of getting her ass back home on time.

For all she knew, if her dad found out where she'd been and what she'd just discovered, and more importantly how happy it made her, he would find a reason to postpone the wedding as punishment…though then again maybe not because media or no media pulling a stunt like _that _wouldn't sit well with the Taisho family. Yeah, the more she thought about it, she was pretty sure the wedding would still be scheduled for four o'clock that afternoon even if she strolled through the front door on Inuyasha's arm at half past noon…but it was better to not take any chances. Once she was married off she would 'belong' to Inuyasha, which meant that her father would no longer have any say and she…and the _two _of them…could do whatever they wanted.

So it was decided then that Inuyasha would drive Kagome home, as he had been originally planning on doing, dropping her off a couple of mansions over to let her enter the grounds of her family manor alone. Originally she would have snuck back through her bedroom window, but since there was obviously no point in that now she headed straight for the front door, which was actually unlocked, her parents up and waiting for her arrival. Parking his car and sneaking closer once Kagome was inside, Inuyasha didn't fight his protective instinct now that he knew she really _was _his woman, listening for a moment to make sure no kind of crazy fight broke out. Her father scolded her a little bit, to which she replied as she should on the surface, with apologies and promises to behave from thereon out, and then he heard a woman's voice, either her mother or a live-in maid, offer her something to eat for breakfast.

Ah, Kagome just replied with 'Thanks Mom', so that answered that.

Listening for a moment longer until he was satisfied, Inuyasha quickly made his way back to his car and drove off, heading back to his apartment first to try and scrub as much of her scent off of him as possible before heading to his own parents' manor. Sure, it was _Kagome's _scent, but he doubted his father would know that unless Mr. Higurashi had happened to have just hugged his daughter before their meeting, and somehow he doubted the likelihood of that possibility. He didn't want to get in trouble with the ol' man for showing up the day of his wedding smelling of sex, but neither did he want to confess as to just whom the scent actually belonged. That would shatter Kagome's perfect image in his father's mind, after all, and he'd rather let _both _of their families continue on thinking that they'd each reformed themselves for the sake of the marriage. It was simpler that way. In reality, he'd take Kagome out clubbing whenever the hell she wanted to, and he'd even still let her wear her sexy little corset top so long as she didn't mind him clinging all over her so that every guy in the place knew precisely whom she belonged to. The wench was _his_.

oooOoooOooo

The morning went by in a blur of activity for everyone involved. Kagome took a _long _shower, with scented soaps, to make sure Inuyasha's scent and the general smell of sex were washed clean from her skin. No reason to scandalize his family. Dousing herself in perfume afterwards, she then prepared herself for the hour upon hour of getting fussed over by the half a dozen dress maids her mother had hired to make sure everything looked perfect, from the dress to her hair and makeup. She felt like shit, though fortunately nobody seemed to realize she was actually hung over, aside from her parents who knew she'd been out partying the night before. Everyone else just thought it was wedding jitters.

Inuyasha's family wasn't quite so frantic, though his dad did compliment him that he seemed to be taking his responsibilities like a man, Mr. Taisho having feared that at the last moment his son was going to try one last time to get out of it. Inuyasha merely rolled his eyes before doing his best to pay attention to everything the assistants were telling him as far as how the precession was going to go, who was standing where and when he needed to do what.

Finally arriving at the Taisho manor around two, Kagome finally got to 'meet' Inuyasha, and the two of them did a splendid job of pretending they hadn't screwed each other's brains out the night before.

"Nice to meet you." Inuyasha stated with an awkwardness that truly came from fearing he was a bad actor, though it seemed to pass as a different type of awkwardness which worked out just fine for him.

There was a brief sit down with tea before the ceremony in which their fathers discussed the final closing business arrangements, and Kagome hated having to just sit there listening to herself being talked about as if she were a race horse or some other kind of living commodity, but since Inuyasha was in the same boat at least she didn't feel so alone.

She actually enjoyed meeting Inuyasha's mother; Izayoi was a lovely woman, and when she approached her in private shortly before the ceremony wishing to assure her that Inuyasha was a good man and would treat her right, Kagome didn't feel out of place cupping Mrs. Taisho's hands and assuring her in turn that she had every confidence she and Inuyasha would be quite happy together, indeed. Izayoi didn't fully understand the message behind the statement, but she could easily tell that the girl's smile was genuine, and so she felt good knowing that her husband had done well, he had chosen a good bride for her son.

The ceremony itself was long and boring, the hardest part being when they each had to restrain themselves during the kiss, keeping it chaste, when all they wanted to do was rip each other's clothes off. Dinner after the ceremony was even longer and more boring, though at least the food was good, and Kagome and Inuyasha could _finally _have an honest conversation with each other. It was true that they really didn't know all that much about each other, so as they casually chitchatted throughout their meal they informed each other of stupid little things, like what schools they'd gone to or what extracurricular skills they had. They had to keep it tame, but they could save questions like 'What's your favorite sexual position?' for the wedding night.

Speaking of, Mr. Taisho had reserved for them the penthouse suite at one of the swankiest hotels at one of the most prestigious vacation resorts in the country, where they would be staying for the next two weeks, during which time Inuyasha was supposed to, on the side, acquire a permanent place of residence for he and his new bride since his bachelor pad was _not _acceptable, according to his father. Inuyasha really did like his little apartment, and it meant a lot to him that Kagome had so readily agreed to move in with him there, but eventually they would be having children and so ultimately a one bedroom / one bath just wasn't going to cut it. He didn't mind sacrificing the apartment so long as it was because he had a woman like Kagome by his side. For the next two weeks, though, he didn't really want Kagome by his side. He wanted her _under _him, or maybe on top of him, or in front of him on her hands and knees…

From the look she was giving him as they sat in the limo on their way to the airport, he got the distinct impression her thoughts were running along similar lines. He was going to like being married to Kagome.

~ Fin ~


End file.
